ORLANDO, Fla. -- U.S. Senator for Florida, Marco Rubio visited the Naval Support Activity and Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division Orlando during an orientation tour of one of the nation's largest Modeling and Simulation industry clusters.

While aboard NSA Orlando, the senator was hosted by Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division/NSA Orlando Commanding Officer, Capt. William “Roto” Reuter and retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Tom Baptiste, Executive Director for the National Center for Simulation (NCS). Senior leaders from each of the military services, the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission, University of Central Florida (UCF), and UCF's Institute for Simulation and Training (IST) participated in the meeting as the Senator and his staff heard about the high impact military, academic and industry partnership that comprises “Team Orlando.”

Upon arriving at NAWCTSD, Senator Rubio and his staff were greeted by several leaders of most of Team Orlando's organizations.

The visit began with a round table discussion led by Capt. Reuter who explained how the various organizations of Team Orlando work together. Meanwhile, Baptiste explained how military simulation technology, including serious games and virtual worlds, have an even greater value to the Nation as these technologies are tapped for other industry sectors such as education and medicine. He reiterated that the simulations are ‘economically and ecologically friendly’ and they allow users to practice dangerous maneuvers as well as conduct mission rehearsals, all much more efficiently and effectively.

The team discussed the relevance of modeling and simulation to the medical industry sector explaining that what has been done in the military simulations are applicable in the training of surgeons, doctors and all medical professionals – even to the point of skill certification. They also discussed that with Orlando’s new Medical City being constructed at nearby Lake Nona, further collaboration is inevitable.

Reuter gave a mission overview of the military and other government agencies that are part of the team. He explained the acquisition and operational missions of the organizations and spoke about how they accomplish their individual and collaborative missions. He spoke about the financial impact – stating that together the organizations are awarding about $4.5 billion in contracts each year. "This is the world's Center of Excellence for modeling and simulation," said Reuter. After the round table discussion, Capt. Reuter led Sen. Rubio and his staff to see demonstrations of some of the simulations and technology being acquired, built and fielded by the armed forces.

NAWCTSD provided a demonstration of how pressure-sensitive touch-screen technology can be used to train Sailors conduct maintenance aboard submarines at a fraction of the cost of replicating the environment in a classroom. After trying his hand at moving virtual tools on virtual workbench in a simulated submarine environment, Rubio noted that that technology was exciting because it could easily be applied to multiple applications.

And the Simulation and Training Technology Center (STTC) showed some of the medical research that will become important training tools in military and civilian medical applications. One notable display included limbs made from synthetic flesh. STTC is using synthetic flesh as a more realistic alternative to conducting training with live animals. The medical research is already playing an important role in the collaborative partnerships within Orlando’s Medical City, including the new University of Central Florida Medical School and the new Veterans Affairs hospital and simulation lab.

Representatives from the Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation (PEO STRI) demonstrated an Intelligence Electronic Warfare Tactical Proficiency Trainer (IEWTPT), a system that provides proficiency training for analyst and system operators to acquire and exploit intelligence data during training, just as they would in real world operations.

"These programs have tremendous applications that could be used for training outside of the military realm," Rubio said after viewing the demonstrations. "With this technology, you could train anyone to do anything. The commercial applications of this technology would be extraordinary."

After the senator asked how customers know who to contact within the various military simulation agencies, Reuter explained how the Joint Training and Integration Evaluation Center (JTIEC) serves as a central point of contact that liaisons with each of the Team Orlando agencies to help connect a customer need with the organization that is best suited to deliver a training system.

"Thank you all for the work you do, it's very exciting," Rubio said at the end of his visit. "The fact it's in Florida is even more exciting."

Rubio serves on several Congressional committees including the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.